Phase-change ink image producing machines or printers employ phase-change inks that are in the solid phase at ambient temperature, but exist in the molten or melted liquid phase at the elevated operating temperature of the machine or printer. At such an elevated operating temperature, droplets or jets of the molten or liquid phase change ink are ejected from a printhead device of the printer onto a printing media. Such ejection can be directly onto a final image receiving substrate, or indirectly onto an imaging member before transfer from it to the final image receiving media. When the ink droplets contact the surface of the printing media, the droplets quickly solidify to create an image in the form of a predetermined pattern of solidified ink drops.
An example of such a phase change ink image producing machine or printer, and the process for producing images therewith onto image receiving sheets is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,372,852.